The Adventures of Red Ryder Season 2
by Nickstar777
Summary: Crime is still rampant throughout Ambrose City, join David Young, billionaire CEO by day, crime fighting vigilante by night, along with his new sidekick, Copper.
1. Copper

This is the first edition of Season 2 of Red Ryder, I hope you enjoy

Disclaimer: I do not own DC Comics

* * *

Red Ryder was in the museum, he was searching for Bombshell.

"Come on out Lloyd, don't make this any harder than it needs to be" said Ryder

Ryder heard footsteps, he pulled out one of his Shurikens and threw it in the direction of the footsteps, he heard it hit someone and heard them groan in pain for a second, Ryder leaped at them and tackled the person he heard, it was Bombshell.

"Lloyd Chester, you're under arrest, again" said Ryder

Later, police had arrived at the museum and had taken away Bombshell, Ryder hopped in the Ryder Wing and flew home. It had been over a year since David became Red Ryder, he was now 21 years old. He received a communication from Angelo.

" _Excuse me sir, did you capture Mr Chester?_ " asked Angelo

"Yes, he's heading back to Rollins Asylum and I'm heading home" said Ryder

A small alarm in the Wing went off.

"Wait, actually, scratch that, I might be a little late" said Ryder

Ryder activated the wing's radar and saw where the crime was taking place, Ryder headed to it and he wound up in an alleyway, he looked in the alley and saw a mugging, the mugger was wearing a navy trench coat, he had a man and a woman at gunpoint, when the man tried to fight back, the mugger shot him and the woman, Ryder stepped in and quickly tackled the mugger before pressing his foot on his face.

"Do you realise what you just did?" asked Ryder, clearly mad

Ryder quickly knocked the mugger out and turned his attention to the man and the woman, he then realised there was a third person, a teenage boy, about 15 years of age, he was dressed in a hoodie and a pair of baggy pants.

"Are you okay?" asked Ryder

The boy didn't respond. Ryder placed a pair of handcuffs on the mugger. Later on, the police arrived to take in the mugger, Ryder was talking to Francis.

"The man planned to mug the 3 people, when the man tried to fight back, the man shot him dead and then the woman, he left the boy alive, but if I hadn't have interfered, that might have been a different story" said Ryder

Ryder looked at the boy sitting on the ground.

"What do we do about the boy?" asked Ryder

"We could leave him in police custody for the time being, but soon we might need to find a safe house, he's a witness in this, but if we leave him in a safe house for too long, then the man might come after him" said Francis

Ryder thought for a minute.

"Did the mugger say anything?" asked Ryder

"Yes, he kept saying he was just following orders" said Francis

The police took the boy with them to the station and left, Ryder hopped back in the wing and flew home.

==The Next Day==

David arrived at the police station, he saw the boy in the station. David went to talk to Francis.

"Morning Francis" said David

"Morning David, what are you doing here?" asked Francis

"I heard something about a mugging last night that turned into a double homicide" said David

"Yeah, the boy out there lost his parents because of that" said Francis

"How is the boy?" asked David

"Not too well, he won't eat, he won't sleep and he won't speak, he won't even tell us his name" said Francis

"Any plans?" asked David

"Well, like I told Red Ryder last night, we plan to keep him here for now for protection, but eventually we'll need to transfer him to a safe house" said Francis

David thought for a minute, the boy reminded of him of himself, losing both his parents at a young age.

"Francis, may I make a suggestion?" asked David

"What is it?" asked Francis

"What if I take care of the boy, my home has plenty of room and a top of the range security system incase anyone comes after him" said David

"Are you saying that you would like to take care of the boy?" asked Francis

"I don't see why not" said David

"I don't either, as long as the boy doesn't mind" said Francis

Francis and David got up out of their seats and went to leave, but David had one more question.

"Hey Francis, the mugger who killed the boys parents, did he say anything?" asked David

"Only that he was following orders" said Francis

"He didn't give a name?" asked David

"No" said Francis

The 2 walked over to the boy, who was sitting reading.

"Hey kid, this is David, he'll be taking care of you until this mess is taken care of" said Francis

The boy didn't respond, he only nodded.

Later, David drove the boy to Young Mansion. Shortly after turning 20, David received his drivers licence, he was working on a new vehicle for Red Ryder.

"Here we are" said David

The boy didn't respond, he only walked into the mansion, when David walked in, he went to talk to Angelo.

"Welcome back sir, how did things go at the station?" asked Angelo

"The mugger hasn't given a name yet, also, you might want to set out an extra plate for dinner tonight" said David

David walked over to his old grandfather clock, he pressed a secret button and the clock opened up, David stepped in and was transferred to the lab, before Angelo closed the clock. Soon Angelo arrived in the lab and David was in the Red Ryder suit. The suit had been altered over the year that David had been Red Ryder, the only change made was that it wasn't sleeveless anymore.

"Where are you going?" asked Angelo

"Back to the station, that mugger doesn't want to talk, but I'll make him" said Ryder

Ryder hopped on the Ryder cycle and rode to the station. When he arrived, he snuck into the interrogation room where the mugger was.

"Hello there" said Ryder

The mugger looked to see Red Ryder.

"You" said the mugger

"Listen, you say you were only following orders, but who's orders were you following?" asked Ryder

"I don't need to tell you anything" said the mugger

"Very well, I was hoping it wouldn't come to this but..." said Ryder

Ryder pulled out a revolver, he sat on the table opposite the mugger and emptied out the bullets, before placing one back in the cylinder.

"Are you familiar with Russian Roulette?" asked Ryder

Ryder spun the cylinder and pointed it at his own head, before pulling the trigger, but nothing happened.

"Five left, care to talk?" asked Ryder

"No" said the mugger

Ryder pointed the gun at the mugger and pulled the trigger, again, nothing.

"Four to go, if you want to stop then speak up" said Ryder

Ryder repeated the process until there were 2 chambers left, and it was Ryder's turn, he pointed the gun at his own head.

"Only 2 chambers left, if this one is empty then you're out of luck, unless you have anything to say" said Ryder

"Screw you" said the mugger

Ryder pulled the trigger, nothing.

"Last one left" said Ryder

Ryder pointed the gun at the mugger.

"Anything on your mind?" asked Ryder

The mugger got nervous now, Ryder was getting closer and closer to pulling the trigger.

"ALRIGHT, I'LL TALK, the man who hired me, his name was Don Marcella" said the mugger

Ryder dropped the gun and walked away, he returned to the lab.

"Sir, I heard what you did at the station, that was completely unorthodox, you could have killed him" said Angelo

"Like I've said before Angelo, I never kill, I tricked him" said Ryder

"What do you mean?" asked Angelo

Ryder reached into his sleeve and pulled out a bullet, Ryder had slipped the bullet into his sleeve when the mugger didn't realise it.

"How's the boy?" asked Ryder

"He's upstairs watching detective shows" said Angelo

David got changed out of the Ryder suit and went upstairs and saw the boy.

"Hey there" said David

The boy looked to see David.

"You know, I realised you never gave me your name" said David

The boy didn't respond.

"I know what it's like, losing both your parents, trust me when I say that you start to fell better, even though you always miss them" said David

"Eric" said the boy

"Excuse me?" asked David

"My name is Eric. Eric Skipper" said the boy

"Well Eric, I hope you enjoy staying here for now" said David

==Later==

Eric was searching the house, trying to familiarise himself with it, he heard something in a room upstairs, he followed the sound and found David fighting a training dummy.

"What are you doing?" asked Eric

"Oh, hey there Eric, I'm just doing some martial arts training" said David

"Can I try?" asked Eric

"I don't see why not" said David

Eric walked up to the training dummy and started, he showed some impressive martial arts skills.

"Not bad for a 14 year old" said David

"I'm 15" said Eric

"Sorry" said David

Over the next few days, Eric and David started to develop a friendship, however, Eric was constantly annoyed by David's absences.

"Hey Angelo, where does David actually go, he keeps saying he has business meetings, but the other day, he left at 11 and didn't come back until 3 in the morning" said Eric

"Sorry, but I'm afraid I don't know" lied Angelo

Meanwhile, Red Ryder was fighting some mobsters, they knew where Don Marcella was. Ryder was able to defeat all of them, he knocked out 2 mobsters, leaving only one left, he stepped on the man's face.

"Where is Don Marcella?" asked Ryder

"He's at his uncle's place in the south part of the city, big white place, you can't miss it" said the mobster

Ryder knocked the man out and went to find Don Marcella. Back at the mansion, Eric noticed a room that was the only room in the entire mansion that was locked.

"Hey Angelo, why is this the only place in the mansion with a locked door? What's in here?" asked Eric

"That's just the silver closet" said Angelo

Meanwhile, Ryder had arrived at the place the mobster told him, he went in and saw Don Marcella's uncle watching a boxing match, Ryder snuck up behind him.

"Who's winning?" asked Ryder

The man got a fright from that.

"What are you doing here?" asked the man

"Where is your nephew? Don Marcella?" asked Ryder

"He was here earlier, but he left" said the man

"Very well" said Ryder, before leaving

What the man didn't know is that Ryder placed a mini microphone on the man's chair before leaving. When Ryder left, a skinny man in a navy blue suit entered the room.

"Hey Uncle, you okay?" asked the man

"Don, what did you do? Now because of you, Red Ryder is after us" said the uncle

"What?" asked Don Marcella

Unknown to them, Ryder was listening to everything.

"I have had enough of your screw ups, get out now, you are no longer a part of this family" said Don's uncle

Don Marcella left, he stepped in a car, but when he tried to start the engine, Ryder jumped onto the hood of the car and scared Don Marcella.

"Boo!" said Ryder

Marcella started driving recklessly trying to throw off Ryder. Ryder started punching the windscreen, however, Marcella was able to throw him off, drive away, and escape.

"NO! He got away!" said Ryder

Ryder returned to the lab, Angelo was waiting.

"Welcome back sir" said Angelo

"I was so close, I could smell his sweat, from now on, Don Marcella gets my undivided attention" said Ryder

"How fortunate for Marcella, because there's a 15 year old upstairs who's just aching for some of that attention" said Angelo

"I'm doing this for him" said Ryder

"I'm sure revenge can be sweet, but at the moment, what he needs is a friend, after all, isn't that what you needed?" asked Angelo

David went upstairs, he found Eric in the gym, Eric was doing some impressive acrobatic skills.

"Where did you learn to do that?" asked David

"Me and my parents used to perform in the circus as acrobats, but the circus went out of business and we had to find something new" said Eric

"Really?" asked David

"Yeah" said Eric

==The Next Day==

The Next Day, David and Eric were sparring.

"Remember to keep your guard up" said David

Eric quickly got behind David and swept his leg, tripping him up.

"Nice one, but that's enough for today" said David

"Alright David" said Eric

Eric walked off and Angelo stood at the door.

"Excuse me sir, but the commissioner is here to see you" said Angelo

"Alright" said David

David and Francis spoke in David's study, what they didn't know was that Eric was listening behind the door.

"I just wanted to let you know that the kid might not have to stay here much longer" said Francis

"Oh?" asked David

"We put some wanted posters up around the city and we already have a few bites, Marcella's been spotted on the lower east side" said Francis

"Why?" asked David

"We hear he's trying to skip town" said Francis

"How soon?" asked David

"Could be tonight, Red Ryder's got Marcella spooked, his friends too, no one will even go near the guy" said Francis

Eric walked away. That night, Eric snuck out of the mansion and made a run for it. He took a bus to the lower east side of Ambrose City. He took one of the wanted posters of Marcella with him and started showing it to people, asking if they had seen him, but no one had. While searching, he found someone trying to rob a woman in an alley, using the martial arts training David taught him, he was able to stop the man and return the woman's money.

"Thanks kid" said the woman

"No problem, hey..." said Eric

Eric showed her the poster of Marcella

"...Have you seen this guy anywhere?" asked Eric

"Oh my, yeah, I know this deadbeat" said the woman

"You do?" asked Eric

"Yeah, he comes from the motel a couple blocks away" said the woman

"Thanks" said Eric

Eric went to find Marcella. He arrived at the motel, but the place looked condemned, Eric heard something, he looked in a window and saw Don Marcella inside packing a suitcase.

" _There you are_ " thought Eric

Eric looked around and saw a payphone, he went to it to call the police, but before he could dial anything, Marcella caught him.

"Let go of me" said Eric

"What are you doing here?" asked Marcella

Eric punched Marcella in the gut, causing Marcella to release his grip, Eric tried to make a run for it, but Marcella caught up to him.

"Listen punk, I don't know what you're doing here, but I'm gonna make sure you don't tell anyone where I am" said Marcella

Suddenly, someone punched Marcella in the face, and it wasn't Eric. When Eric looked to see who it was, he saw Red Ryder.

"Hope you enjoy prison, you scum" said Ryder

"It's your fault my parents are dead, time for me to return the favour" said Eric

Eric started beating down Marcella, until Marcella pushed him away. Eric grabbed a railing to pull himself up, but the railing was old and rusted and broke when Eric got to his feet. Eric lost his balance and fell into the spillway, Ryder threw Marcella to the ground and ran to save Eric.

"So much for the Ryder and the Runt" said Marcella

Eric was getting closer and closer to a waterfall, but Ryder was able to get to him in time, Ryder took out his grappling launcher, when the 2 fell off the waterfall, Ryder launched the grapple at a street light and pulled himself and Eric to safety.

"I can't believe he got away! You had him, you let him get away" said Eric

Ryder called for the Ryder-Wing, when it arrived, he hopped in.

"Get in" said Ryder

"Why?" asked Eric

"I'm taking you home" said Ryder

Eric hopped in the Ryder-Wing and Ryder started to pilot it back to Young Mansion.

"Hey, where did you get this?" asked Eric

"It was originally a military jet" said Ryder

The wing arrived at Young Mansion and Eric got out of the Wing, before Ryder flew off.

"Hey wait, how did he know this is where I'm staying?" asked Eric

The next day, Eric noticed David heading to the mansion's cellar and not coming out for hours, curiosity got the best of him, when David went to work, Eric went to the cellar, the door to the cellar was locked, luckily, Eric had some lock picking skills and was able to get in, when he got in, all he found was a collection of rare drinks from around the world, Eric noticed one bottle that seemed to have been used more times than any other, but had never had a single sip taken from it.

"What's this?" asked Eric

Eric grabbed the bottle, but couldn't pick it up, while trying to pick it up, he pulled it towards him like a lever and a secret door opened up, Eric went through the secret door and found himself in some sort of tunnel, he kept searching until he found the other end of the tunnel, and found himself in some sort of lab.

"Whoa, this is cool" said Eric

Eric searched through the lab, when Angelo came in, he found Eric snooping.

"What are you doing Eric?" asked Angelo

"What is this place?" asked Eric

"Well, I guess there's no point keeping it a secret any longer, Eric...I'm Red Ryder" said Angelo

Eric only laughed at what Angelo said.

Later, David returned from work, he entered the lab.

"Angelo, any news on Marcella?" asked David

"Nothing, but there is some news on Eric" said Angelo

"What is it?" asked David

"I'm right here" said Eric

David looked to see Eric in the lab near the Ryder Cycle.

"Eric what are you doing here?" asked David

"What is going on here?" asked Eric

"Fine, you might as well know, since you found this place, I'm Red Ryder, the reason I've been absent a lot is because I've been searching for Marcella" said David

"That is so cool" said Eric

"But Eric, you can't tell anyone" said David

"I promise" said Eric

"Thanks" said David

"I take it that Mr Skipper's stay with us will now be indefinite?" asked Angelo

"Yes it is" said David

"You know, if you had a partner in this, you might be able to find Marcella a lot faster" said Eric

"I work alone" said David

"But I can help you" said Eric

"I'm sorry Eric, I can't let you get hurt, last time, you nearly got yourself killed" said David

==Next Week==

David still couldn't find Marcella, during dinner, David noticed Eric drawing something.

"What are you drawing?" asked David

Eric showed David what he was drawing, it was a design for a sidekick costume.

"Look, I'm sorry I said we can't work together, but I can't put you in harm's way" said David

Eric left. Angelo called David into the lab.

"What is it?" asked David

"It's Marcella, the computer was able to find him" said Angelo

"That's great, where?" asked David

"The abandoned theme park near the docks" said Angelo

David got changed into the Ryder suit and hopped in the Ryder-Wing and flew off. What he didn't see was Eric hiding in the lab, when Ryder left, Eric hopped on the Ryder-Cycle and rode off. Within minutes, Ryder arrived at the Theme Park. Ryder snuck near an old building, inside the phone started ringing, Marcella answered it.

"Hello?...Hello?...Who's There?...Ah, forget it" said Marcella

Don Marcella hung up the phone.

"I don't like this, are you guys sure Red Ryder didn't follow you?" asked Marcella

"Nah, you've got nothing to worry about" said one of Marcella's men

Marcella quickly grabbed the man's shirt.

"Don't tell me what I've got to worry about, I'm not back in town 5 minutes and he's already on my tail, you don't know Ryder, he's relentless, he doesn't give up, he's a dark angel of death and he wants ME" said Marcella

"Why you boss?" asked another of Marcella's men

"HOW SHOULD I KNOW?" asked Marcella

Marcella started hearing creaking upstairs.

"What was that?" asked Marcella

"Sounded like rats" said one of Marcella's men

"Yeah, rats" said Marcella

Marcella grabbed a machine gun and rapidly fired it at the ceiling, eventually, he stopped.

"Boss, calm down, you're starting to worry us" said one of Marcella's men

Suddenly, the ceiling crashed and Ryder fell though it.

"Momma" said Marcella, worried

Ryder tried to get up, but he tweaked his knee upon landing.

"What's the matter Red, twist your knee? Looks like you could use some protection right about now" said Marcella

Marcella aimed the gun at Ryder, but couldn't shoot him since he used up all the ammo shooting the ceiling.

"NOOO!" screamed Marcella

Ryder threw a smoke bomb and used it to make his escape. Soon, the smoke cleared.

"What are you deadbeats standing around for? GET HIM!" screamed Marcella

Ryder hid in one of the amusement park's booths, he grabbed a plank of wood and some fabric and used the fabric to tie the plank to his leg to treat the wound.

"Where is he?" asked one of Marcella's men

"Not far, you saw how he was limping...Spread Out" said Marcella

Marcella's men started spreading out, one of them walked past the booth Ryder was hiding in, but when the goon searched it, Ryder was gone, Ryder used his stealth skills to knock the thug out. The second thug searched for Ryder near the merry-go-round, however, using his glue bomb, incapacitated the thug, but not before he called over the third and final goon.

"GET HIM!" screamed the goon.

The third thug started swinging at Ryder with a metal pipe, but Ryder caught the pipe, the 2 started struggling for possession of the pipe, causing the thug to push Ryder into the lever to start the Merry-Go-Round, the music the merry-go-round made alerted Marcella about Ryder's location. Ryder was able to fight off the thug and knock him out.

"Round and round we go, aye Ryder? Ride's over" said Marcella

"NO BOSS! DON'T YOU'LL HIT US" screamed one of Marcella's goons

"Sorry boys" said Marcella

Marcella aimed the machine gun, until he heard a motorcycle, he looked at a poster where the sound was coming from, he saw a motorcycle crash through the poster, he started shooting at the motorcycle, but he missed every shot. The rider rode in Marcella's direction, grabbing him by the collar of his suit, he rode halfway down the docks before letting go of Marcella's suit, before stopping the motorcycle and getting off, revealing the rider, a guy average in height, wearing a tight, dark red T-Shirt, black tights with red streaks down the sides, grey gauntlets, a grey utility belt, black boots, a black Zorro mask and a black hooded cape.

"You're done" said the motorcycle rider

" _Eric?_ " thought Ryder

Marcella reached for the machine gun, but the motorcycle rider kicked it away.

"I don't believe this" said Marcella

"You're through Marcella, forever" said the motorcycle rider

"Is that so?" asked Marcella

Marcella tried to throw a punch, but the motorcycle rider caught it and grabbed Marcella's collar.

"I'm gonna enjoy this" said the motorcycle rider

"Who are you?" asked Marcella

"You can call me 'Copper'" said the motorcycle rider

Copper threw Marcella into a set of crates, before picking him up and throwing him into another set of crates.

"Please stop" said Marcella

"Why? I'm just getting started" said Copper

Copper grabbed Marcella and threw him into the wooden barricade on the docks. Marcella tried to get away, but Copper pulled something out of his back pocket, it was a metal rod, 6 inches in length, Copper pressed a button on it and the rod expanded into a metal Bo staff, 20 inches in length. Copper hit Marcella in the back of the head with the staff, before picking him up and threatening to throw him off the docks.

"Please, don't do it" said Marcella

"I'm gonna end you" said Copper

"STOP! That's enough" said Ryder

"Ryder, call off Copper, he's trying to kill me" said Marcella

"Copper, you can't let your emotions get the better of you" said Ryder

"Stuff your advice Ryder, you and your code of ethics, you don't know how I feel, how could you?" asked Copper

Just then Copper realised that Ryder actually did know how he felt, he remembered that like him, Ryder lost his parents at a young age.

"Oh, I didn't mean it like that...I'm sorry" said Copper

Copper looked into Marcella's eyes, but rather than letting him fall, he threw him back onto the docks.

"You're under arrest" said Copper

Later, police arrived to take away Marcella. Ryder and Copper stood near the Ryder-Wing.

"You were right not to bring me, I let my emotions get the better of me" said Copper

"It wasn't that, like I said, I didn't want you to get hurt, actually, how did you even find out this was where he was?" asked Ryder

"I found one of his henchmen's apartments and used a phone tracer to trace the last call he received, it lead me here" said Copper

"So that phone call that Marcella received, it was you?" asked Ryder

"Yeah" said Copper

"Where did you get the suit?" asked Ryder

"I made it by modifying my old acrobat uniform" said Copper

"You did good here" said Ryder

"Thanks" said Copper

"And I bet next time that you'll do better" said Ryder

"Next time?" asked Copper

Ryder extended his hand out for a handshake.

"Partners?" asked Ryder

Copper shook Ryder's hand.

"Partners!" said Copper

* * *

 **That's that, how do like Ryder's new sidekick? Hey, every superhero needs one.**

 **READ AND REVIEW**


	2. Wildlife

Time to continue with season 2

Disclaimer: I do not own DC Comics

* * *

A helicopter flew above Rollins Asylum, when it landed on the roof, an inmate hopped in and the pilot flew off.

==Police Station==

Francis was in his office when his phone rang.

"This is Andrews...WHAT?!" asked Francis

Francis stormed out his office.

"We've got a prison break by air, the chopper's heading this way" said Francis

The police followed him out of the station. They entered the police cars and drove off while the chopper flew over them.

"Ha, we're home free" said the inmate

Red Ryder was standing on the roof of a skyscraper when he took out his grapple launcher and shot it at the copter, hitting the tail.

"What was that?" asked the inmate

"Just some turbulence" said the pilot

==Meanwhile==

At the Rose Café, Youngtech Employee, Lester Cowl, was sitting at a table with a beautiful woman with blood red hair and perfect ruby red lips, wearing a red strapless dress that reached her ankles with black flowers at the bottom. The waiter approached them.

"For the Madame, the escargot, and for mousier, the Caesar Salad" said the waiter

"Thank you Andre" said Lester

The waiter walked away and Lester turned his attention to his date.

"I'm starving, let's eat" said Lester

Lester's date grabbed a rose from the vase in the centre of the table and sniffed it.

"Shouldn't we wait for your friend?" she asked

"David? Nah, he's always late, he probably got hung up on business" said Lester

==Meanwhile==

Red Ryder hung onto the rope as the chopper continued to fly, when Ryder saw an opportunity, he was able to wrap the rope around a telephone pole, preventing the chopper from flying any further.

"Huh?" asked the inmate

The pilot tried freeing the chopper, but to no avail, and the chopper went down.

"Uh, what happened?" asked the inmate as he regained his composure

The inmate looked out the window to see Red Ryder standing near the downed helicopter.

==Rose Café==

"I hear he's rich" said Lester's date

"Yeah, David runs around with a high class crowd" said Lester

==Ryder==

The inmate ran away from Ryder across the rooftops as Ryder chased him. The inmate had a tire iron in hand, he tried turning to hit Ryder with the Tire Iron, but Ryder tackled him and they started struggling for control, eventually, the inmate got the upper hand and prepared to strike Ryder.

==Rose Café==

"...But he still manages to get his kicks" said Lester

==Ryder==

Ryder kicked away the inmate.

==Rose Café==

"There's nothing we don't know about each other" said Lester

==Ryder==

Ryder grabbed the inmate by the collar.

"Who...who are you?" asked the inmate, clearly scared

"Your worst nightmare" said Ryder

A police copter flew up and the searchlight shone on Ryder and the inmate.

"This is the police, no body move" said one of the officers through a megaphone

Ryder let go of the inmate and ran off, the inmate fainted.

==Rose Café==

"I think you'll like him" said Lester

"If he's your friend, I know I will" said Lester's date

==Ryder==

Ryder was taking the Ryder-Cycle back to the lab, he contacted Angelo.

"Angelo, I'm running a little behind schedule" said Ryder

" _I've alerted Mr Cowl sir, he and Miss Ivory patiently await your arrival at the Rose Café_ " said Angelo

"How's the food there?" asked Ryder

" _In my humble opinion sir, exquisite_ " said Angelo

"And how's Eric?" asked Ryder

" _His ankle's getting better, but he'll still be unable to fight for another couple of days_ " said Angelo

Ryder arrived at the lab.

"I told him to be careful against Ripjaw" said Ryder

Ryder got changed into a black business suit with a blood red dress shirt.

"The car's out front with a full tank of gas, may I recommend the sirloin" said Angelo

"I'll give it a try" said David

"Wise decision sir, Bon Appetite" said Angelo

==Rose Café==

David arrived at the Rose Café and entered when he noticed Lester and his date.

"David, I'm glad you could make it" said Lester

"Thanks Lester, sorry I'm late" said David

"It's alright" said Lester

"It's nice to see you again Mr Young" said Lester's date

"Again? Wait, I recognize you" said David

"Yes, Pauline Ivory, I used to work for Youngtech, you assigned me to one of your research labs in Africa" said Lester's date

"That's right, you were working on a chemical to protect plants from extinction" said David

"Yeah, it's a shame what happened to the lab though" said Pauline

"Yeah, it's still unknown how that fire got caused" said David

The 3 sat down to enjoy their food. Eventually, they all finished, David was telling them a story about Lester.

"...You should have seen Lester's face" said David

Lester and Pauline laughed. Pauline checked her watch.

"Oh, look at the time, I have to run" said Pauline

"So soon?" asked Lester

"I'm sorry, I have an early meeting tomorrow, but you stay" said Pauline

"No, I can't" said Lester

"I insist, stay here with you're crazy friend, and call me when you get home" said Pauline

Pauline pulled Lester in for a kiss, David looked away out of respect, after about 13 seconds, Pauline broke the kiss and Lester looked a little dazed.

"I'll call you" said Lester

"Good, nice seeing you again David" said Pauline

"You too" said David

Pauline walked out of the café, as she left, multiple males in the café got distracted by her.

"So, what do you think?" asked Lester

"Does she have a sister?" joked David

"Nope, Pauline's one of a kind, that's why I asked her to marry me" said Lester

David did a spit take.

"WHAT?" asked David

"Yep, it's the page one headline, is it getting warm in here?" asked Lester

"You're still flushed from that last kiss, Lester, you just started dating her last week" said David

"And I already know she's the one, gosh, it's hot in here" said Lester

"Marriage is a major step, are you sure you aren't rushing it?" asked David

"No way, the minute I laid eyes on Pauline, love hit me right in the face" said Lester

Lester started feeling dizzy and fainted, going face first into the dessert.

"Lester, you've lost your mind" said David

Lester didn't respond.

"Knock it off" said David

Lester didn't respond

"Lester?" asked David

David pulled Lester back up.

"Lester?" asked David

==Later==

An ambulance arrived at the café and paramedics loaded Lester onto a gurney before loading him into the ambulance and driving away.

"Don't worry Lester, just hang on" said David

==Hospital==

Lester was on a gurney being wheeled through the hallways.

"He's not breathing" said a doctor

"What's his blood pressure?" asked a nurse

"What's his pulse? We need a pulse" said another nurse

"Get an EKG and get him to the OR, ICU number 3, stat" said the doctor

==Meanwhile==

Francis was in his office when the phone rang.

"This is the commissioner...WHAT?" asked Francis

Francis stormed out of his office.

"Lester Cowl's in a coma at the hospital" said Francis

The rest of the police department followed him out.

==Soon==

Police arrived and saw David standing outside Lester's hospital room, the doctor was running some tests before walking out of the room.

"What's the story doctor? Heart Attack?" asked Francis

"No commissioner, Mr Cowl has been poisoned" said the doctor

"My god, detective Barrett, head down to that restaurant, what's it called David?" asked Francis

"The Rose Café" said David

"Get down there and find out who did this" said Francis

"With pleasure" said Barrett

Detective Barrett left.

"I want police surrounding this place around the clock" said Francis

"Yes sir" said an officer

David entered a doctor's office where the doctor was analysing a sample of Lester's blood under a microscope.

"Excuse me doctor, are we talking about food poisoning here?" asked David

"I doubt it, this is the most virulent strain of poison I've ever come across, we're doing all we can Mr Young" said the doctor

"Is Lester going to make it?" asked David

"The poison is racing though his systems, if there's any chance of him making it we need to find the antidote and fast" said the doctor before leaving

David was about to leave when he looked at the microscope slide, he took the slide and placed it in his pocket before leaving.

==Meanwhile==

Detective Barrett was at the café interrogating the chef.

"So what do you put in the mousse?" asked Barrett

"Chocolate, eggs, sugar, milk and cream" said the chef

"Anything else?" asked Barrett

"I did add a pinch of vanilla, but that's it" said the chef

==Meanwhile==

David was analysing the slide in the lab on the supercomputer.

"I've isolated the toxin, Angelo" said David

The computer printed out the results.

"Indeed sir, it is a lethal poison derived from the Sanguis Rose or, as it's also known, the blood rose" said Angelo

"I'll get a sample from the botanical gardens for the antidote" said David

"I'm afraid that's not possible" said Angelo

"Why?" asked David

"Because the Blood Rose has been extinct for nearly 4 years, which means..." said Angelo

"There's no antidote" interrupted David

==Meanwhile==

In an unknown building, an unseen gardener was seen trimming the leaves of the same rose used to poison Lester.

==Hospital==

David returned to the hospital and looked into Lester's room.

"Fight Lester, fight" said David

The elevator doors opened to reveal Pauline.

"David, I came as soon as I got your call, how is he?" asked Pauline

"We're not sure" said David

"I want to see him" said Pauline

"Sorry, commissioner ordered no visitors" said a police officer guarding the room

Pauline looked into the room and started crying.

"You should get some rest, I'll walk you to your car" said David

David took Pauline to the parking lot and to a light blue car before he opened the door for her.

"Call me as soon as there's any change" said Pauline

"I will, now go home and get some rest" said David

"Lester's lucky to have such a good friend like you" said Pauline

Pauline tried to kiss David on the cheek, but David turned it into a hug and a look of suspicion grew on his face. He thought back to the kiss Pauline and Lester shared at the café. Pauline separated the hug.

"Goodnight Dave" said Pauline

"Goodnight Pauline" said David

Pauline got in her car and drove off. David went over to his car and drove home too. On the way home, he contacted Angelo.

" _What can I do for you sir?_ " asked Angelo

"Dig up anything we don't already know on Pauline Ivory, who she is, where she's been, what she does, the works" said David

" _Certainly sir_ " said Angelo

David returned home and entered the lab, Angelo was working at the computer.

"What do you have Angelo?" asked David

"Well, we already know that she worked at one of Youngtech's research labs in Africa, but when she was there, she fell in love with another scientist called Jason Thorne. A couple of days before the lab caught fire, Pauline had fallen ill, turned out, she had been poisoned, luckily she survived, when the lab caught fire, she was the only survivor, after she returned to Ambrose City, she resigned from Youngtech and was arrested for armed robbery, she tried getting away by kissing a female officer, but wouldn't give a reason why" said Angelo

"What does she do now?" asked David

"After she was released from prison, she got a job as a research chemist for a perfume company working on coming up with new fragrances" said Angelo

"Anything else?" asked David

"She gives a monthly lecture series at Ambrose University on endangered and extinct plant species" said Angelo

David grabbed the Ryder Suit and suited up.

"I think Lester's engagement is off" said Ryder

==Later==

Ryder was on the roof of an abandoned greenhouse, he looked in through the glass roof to see a gardener with the blood rose in hand, before placing the poisonous plant on a desk and removing their hat, revealing Pauline.

"Oh, you've done so well today my sweetheart, now, get some rest, and don't worry, I won't clip off any more of your beautiful petals, unless I need them" said Pauline

Pauline left, she went to get changed when Ryder entered through the roof. He ran across the place to reach the blood rose when he fell into a trap door with cacti at the bottom, Ryder grabbed a vine and pulled himself out, when he was out, the vine wrapped itself around his wrist, another vine wrapped itself around his other wrist and a third wrapped around his waist.

"What's going on?" asked Ryder

The vines started to pull Ryder towards something, Ryder noticed they were pulling him towards a giant Venus Fly Trap. Pauline heard the noise.

"What has my sweet little fly trap caught this time?" asked Pauline

Pauline entered the room to see Ryder struggling against the fly trap.

"A little big for a fly" said Pauline

Ryder kept struggling against the fly trap when Pauline turned on all the lights in the greenhouse.

"Hahaha, Red Ryder, a late night rendezvous? To what do I owe the honour?" asked Pauline

Pauline stepped out of the shadows, revealing what she was wearing, a green sleeveless body suit with green boors and green gloves with some sort of device around her wrist.

"Lester Cowl" said Ryder

"Oh, the poor man, I hear he's not expected to live" said Pauline

Pauline buried her face into her hands and appeared to start crying, before she moved her hands away to reveal she was actually laughing maniacally.

"Why Ivory?" asked Ryder

"Please, call me Thorne" said Pauline

"In tribute to Jason?" asked Ryder

Thorne nodded.

"When I was in Africa working for Youngtech, a chemical got mixed in with my lipstick, poisoning me when I used it, when I was cured, I discovered that the chemical gave me certain abilities, by simply kissing people I could poison them, kill them, blind them, wipe their memory or even make them my puppets, when I returned to America, I tried using my abilities to rob the bank to finance my botany research when I was caught by a female officer, I tried using my new abilities to wipe her memory, but it didn't work, as it turns out, females are immune to my abilities, and I was arrested" said Thorne

"What about Lester? Why poison him?" asked Ryder

"He had to pay for his crimes" said Thorne

"What crimes?" asked Ryder

"Murder, during my imprisonment, Lester was behind a project to build a new Ambrose City library, but in the process, he killed hundreds of precious plants, had I not had another Blood Rose, it would have been extinct, so his fate was sealed..." said Thorne

Thorne applied some lipstick.

"...with a kiss" said Thorne

Thorne walked up to Ryder

"And now, so is yours" said Thorne

Thorne walked up to Ryder and removed his mask, but not his goggles, so she didn't recognise him. She kissed Ryder on the lips and Ryder started hallucinating.

"What's wrong? Afraid I have cooties?" joked Thorne

Ryder spat.

"Oh, now you've hurt my feelings, too bad, and I was willing to share the antidote with you" said Thorne

Thorne grabbed a purple perfume bottle and held it at Ryder's nose.

"Lovely fragrance isn't it? I call it 'Rose from the Dead'" said Thorne

Ryder kicked away Thorne and grabbed a knife, he cut the vines tied around him and escaped, but he felt a little dizzy, he grabbed his mask and put it back on.

"NO!" screamed Thorne

Ryder got back to his feet and Thorne aimed the device around her wrist at Ryder. The device shot out an arrow at Ryder, but Ryder ducked under the arrow and it hit the fly trap.

"AGH!" screamed Throne

Thorne kept shooting at Ryder, Ryder took out the grapple launcher and fired it at an overhead light, but the light broke and fell into water, the sparks went over the plants in the greenhouse, starting a fire. Thorne grabbed the Blood Rose and tried to escape, when a flaming tree branch was about to fall on her, but Ryder pushed her out of harms way. Ryder landed back in the trap door. Thorne got back to her feet, Ryder was still hallucinating, Thorne aimed her arrow launcher at Ryder again.

"Enjoy extinction Ryder" said Thorne

"I'm not going alone" said Ryder

Ryder held out the Blood Rose in his hand.

"NO!" screamed Thorne

"The bottle for the weed, what's it gonna be?" asked Ryder

Thorne dropped the bottle of the antidote, she grabbed the rose and hugged the pot it was in.

"My baby, my precious baby" said Thorne

Ryder grabbed the bottle and he and Thorne rushed out of the greenhouse.

"My pretty baby" said Thorne

Ryder placed a pair of handcuffs on Thorne.

==The Next Morning==

Lester woke up from his coma.

"Where am I?" asked Lester

"The hospital" said David

"Why? What happened?" asked Lester

"You passed out into your chocolate mousse" said Detective Barrett

"But you should be fine" said Francis

"Hey Lester, about your engagement to Pauline, we're friends right?" asked David

"Mm Hm" mumbled Lester

"So we should be honest with each-other" said David

"Yeah" said Lester

"Alright, I think Pauline's wrong for you" said David

"Huh?" asked Lester

==Meanwhile==

Thorne was in her cell in Rollins Asylum.

"They can bury me in the ground as deep as they like, but I'll grow back, we always grow back" said Thorne

==Later==

David was in the lab when Eric entered.

"Hey, see your injuries are all gone" said David

"Yeah, hey, Angelo told me about the new villain" said Eric

"Good to know you're all caught up" said David

* * *

 **And that does it for this chapter, let me know what you think of Thorne**

 **READ AND REVIEW**


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